Training with Medea: ready for the energy challenges

International network and unexpected career horizons: the experience of Francesca and Lorenzo.

Combining solid technical skills with a deep understanding of the economic, financial, and managerial dynamics of the energy world: this integrated preparation is an essential skill in today’s energy sector. Developing it is the central educational goal of the Medea Master’s in Management and Economics of Energy and the Environment promoted by Eni as its main tool for training future energy professionals and managers. Managed by the Mattei School (now part of Eni Corporate University) and delivered in collaboration with the University of Pavia, the Medea Master has been a postgraduate path of excellence for decades.

Francesca and Lorenzo, the journey to the Medea Master

The paths and motivations that lead to the Medea Master can be incredibly varied, as are the backgrounds of the students. What unites them all is a strong passion for the energy world and a desire to challenge themselves.

Francesca Gozzi, who earned her degree in Energy Engineering in Bologna after a classical high school diploma, and Lorenzo Villa, who earned the same degree at the Politecnico di Milano, share a strong technical foundation. Since high school, Lorenzo has seen energy as “the basis of everything” and is fascinated by the complexity of the ongoing energy transition. Francesca was looking for a way to broaden her perspective beyond pure engineering, which she had explored in depth at university. The Medea Master emerged as the ideal answer: a unique opportunity to integrate engineering skills with the innovative and managerial vision now required in the sector. A leap that demands open-mindedness: “Facing economic dynamics for the first time wasn’t easy”, Francesca admits, though she never shies away from a challenge—whether in the classroom or hiking with boots on in the nearby Alps.

From Pavia classrooms to Plenitude headquarters

For both, the Medea Master proves to be the perfect springboard: the next step is entering the world of Eni, which brings new discoveries. Francesca focuses on utility-scale renewables, meaning industrial-scale projects, working on complex strategies to enhance plants in Italy and the major international markets where Plenitude operates. A role so specific that she admits: “Before joining Plenitude, I wouldn’t have imagined someone even did this kind of job”. Lorenzo also discovers an unexpected future. Initially inclined toward renewable design due to his background, he becomes a Market Analyst in the Gas & Power division. A new role that turns into a passion for a world of portfolio management, hedging, and even parallels between finance and plant physics: “There are aspects of managing a gas cycle that resemble the logic used in financial options”. The flexibility of remote work allows Francesca to maintain a strong connection to her hometown of Bologna, while Lorenzo, paddle in hand, recharges kayaking on the lakes. A good balance between private life and work emerges as another positive aspect of their experience at Plenitude. For both, however, direct relationships with colleagues remain essential: that human factor, which also strongly emerged during the Master, is an irreplaceable part of a professional and intellectual journey that finds fertile ground here to grow.

The importance of relationships

Since its founding, inspired by Enrico Mattei’s vision, the Master has always had a strong international calling, welcoming young talent from around the world and creating a unique multicultural environment—ideal for building a network of relationships and friendships that go far beyond the classroom. The intensity of a year spent in close contact, sharing the same passion for the energy sector, creates special bonds. Lorenzo, who attended the Master in person, describes it this way: “There’s a kind of camaraderie like in high school, but with a different maturity”. The international soul of the Master also fosters connections between EU and non-EU students with very different cultural backgrounds. A unique opportunity, according to Lorenzo, to “get to know distant realities”: an enrichment that “opens you up to the world” and will prove fundamental in their professional experience. Lifelong friendships are also born here: Lorenzo recalls his vacation in Cyprus with some classmates he met in class… and on the basketball court between lectures.

In Francesca’s experience too, relationships played a crucial role in overcoming the difficulties during the 2021 edition, impacted by Covid. In the midst of the pandemic, with the Master – like most university courses – moved entirely online, amid intense lessons, calls, and group projects on digital platforms, Francesca and the other students, from various parts of Italy and the world, felt something essential was missing. “We wanted to reclaim the human connection that is typically absent in remote learning”, she recalls.
So, as soon as health restrictions began to ease an idea, almost a necessity, took shape: to reunite, driven by a desire for connection that is integral to the Master’s spirit. Spontaneously, some sooner, some later, they converged in Milan and San Donato to spend the last, crucial months of the Master together. They met in person; virtual colleagues became real: “To build a group, to get to know each other better” and overcome the barriers of a screen.

Ready to step up?

Francesca and Lorenzo shared their experience in the Medea Master. A formative and human journey, ready to be lived again in the new edition starting in 2025.The application deadline is April 30, 2025, for international candidates and May 15, 2025, for Italian candidates.
Find out more and apply here: https://www.eni.com/it-IT/carriere/percorsi-formativi/master/medea.html